As crazy as it might sound, there are a few NFL teams who desperately need to sign Kirk Cousins, a soon-to-be 36-year-old QB coming off of a torn Achilles. QB play in the NFL is again in a pretty shaky spot. In 2023, there have been a plethora of backup QBs playing significant amounts of time for their teams.
And there has also been starting QBs playing like backups. It's safe to say that a good chunk of the league will be trying to upgrade their QB position. The best QB who is realistically available in the league this year is Kirk Cousins who is slated to be a free agent. Cousins will be entering his age-36 season in 2024 and is recovering from a torn Achilles he suffered earlier in the year.
The current Minnesota Vikings should be all the way healed by the time Week 1 of 2024 rolls around. Which three teams would need Cousins the most?
3 NFL teams who need to sign Kirk Cousins in 2024 NFL Offseason
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
I genuinely believe that the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Kenny Pickett because he played his college football at Pitt. Pickett is clearly a mid-tier backup type of QB, and neither Mitchell Trubisky nor Mason Rudolph are the long-term answers in Pittsburgh. With the Steelers somehow sitting at 9-7 amidst their horrid QB play this year, it's hard to envision the team not making a huge move to upgrade their QB situation.
And signing Kirk Cousins doesn't mean the Steelers can't also invest a high draft pick in a rookie QB. I'm sure you could sign Cousins for two years, with the second year being more of a team option. It might be the perfect situation for Pittsburgh, who needs to pull the plug on the Kenny Pickett experience.
2. Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are another team that desperately needs to sign Kirk Cousins. The Falcons seemed to rely on Desmond Ridder to make the year two leap, after a moderately promising rookie year. Well, Ridder actually looks worse this year, and backup QB Taylor Heinicke, is, well, a backup. The Falcons have a chance to go 7-10 for the third-straight year under head coach Arthur Smith.
And this year, their sub-par QB production has been very clear, as the team is fielding one of the better defenses in the NFL and has a very good situation with their skill players on offense. Truly, the Falcons might be a QB away, especially in the embarrassingly weak NFC South. If Arthur Smith does get another year, he'll have to make a splash move to acquire a QB.
And he'll need immediate results. Pulling the plug on the Desmond Ridder experience and signing Kirk Cousins makes a ton of sense. Cousins has proven to be a very efficient QB. He's thrown 270 touchdowns and 110 interceptions over his career. His 98.2 passer rating is very good, as he's been a full-time starter since 2015.
I do think in some ways, Cousins is similar to a former Falcons legend, Matt Ryan. The fit makes sense for both parties.
3. Denver Broncos
One thing that I have repeatedly seen from Broncos fans is this; "We shouldn't sign Kirk Cousins, we should draft a QB instead!" Why not both? Why would signing Kirk Cousins take the Broncos out of taking a QB in 2024? Cousins might be the perfect player, and he'd fit Sean Payton's offense like a glove.
Cousins is not an out-of-structure QB like Russell Wilson is, and that's why Wilson was benched. Sure, he put up decent stats, but much of it was empty calories. For years, the Broncos have tried and failed to get the QB situation right. They tried several team's cast-off players, only for them to not work out.
At some point, the Broncos are going to need to take a stab at a QB of their own, but that QB would benefit from being in a room with a quality passer. Cousins has proven to be a passer that teams can win with. Sean Payton is a very good coach and might coach this Broncos' team to their first winning season since 2016, and he'll do that with average QB play at best.
Not only could the Broncos win with Kirk Cousins, they could make the playoffs with him, and that'd be a great situation for a young QB to step into. Denver gets a veteran QB who fits their offense like a glove, and they also get a young QB coming into a strong situation. The Broncos also have multiple avenues to create cap space in 2024, so I don't think money would be an issue, even when they cut Russell Wilson.